Nano-fabrication includes the fabrication of very small structures that have features on the order of 100 nanometers or smaller. One application in which nano-fabrication has had a sizeable impact is in the processing of integrated circuits. The semiconductor processing industry continues to strive for larger production yields while increasing the circuits per unit area formed on a substrate; therefore nano-fabrication becomes increasingly important. Nano-fabrication provides greater process control while allowing continued reduction of the minimum feature dimensions of the structures formed.
Exemplary nano-fabrication techniques in current use for patterning the features that form these structures include optical lithography, photolithography, nanoimprint lithography, extreme ultraviolet lithography and electron beam lithography, and the like. However, as feature sizes shrink to dimensions less than 100 nanometers, it becomes more difficult to maintain the aspect ratios necessary for high fidelity pattern transfer, particularly when other factors such as topography variations on the existing substrate surface are introduced.